


Love Is A Battlefield

by GlitterLips



Category: Labyrinth (1986)
Genre: F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-19
Updated: 2016-03-29
Packaged: 2018-05-07 14:18:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5459510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GlitterLips/pseuds/GlitterLips
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jareth enters into a wager with his twin to see if he can be the first one to make Sarah fall in love with him. On indeterminate hiatus until such a time as I can bring myself to finish it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

_“Sarah!”_

_The young brunette turned in the direction that her name was called, long hair whipping around and falling onto her shoulders. She squinted in the sunlight to see who was calling her name and raised one hand to her brow to shield her face from the bright light. Then she smiled in recognition and waved to her red haired friend._

_“Briana! Hey! How was Keller’s test?”_

_The other girl groaned, her nose wrinkling in disgust. “Oh, you know… One of Killer Keller’s. It’s like he expects us to have the whole chapter memorized. There was a lot on reactivity though, so if you know all that, then you should be fine.”_

_“Thanks for the advice! I’ve got to run, my English 201 class starts in five minutes. Study session Thursday?”_

_“Same as always. See you then, Sarah!”_

_“Bye!”_

_The two girls parted ways, headed in opposite directions across the college campus. Sarah shifted her books in her arm and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear as she walked, wearing the smile of someone who had just had a pleasant encounter._

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Jareth stared wistfully into his gazing crystal, watching the young woman who captivated him still. She was as lovely as ever…

“Little brother, let it be said that I’ve never doubted your excellent taste in women.”

Jareth sat upright, waving his hand over the crystal so that Sarah’s face disappeared and was replaced with clear, blank space. He scowled in the direction of the voice. “Mab. And just what do I owe the pleasure?”

Mab the Faerie Queen sat on the tall, round windowsill, wearing a smirk on her face that would have put a satisfied cat to shame. The fae woman in question looked nearly identical to the Goblin King; although her hair was longer and her features more feminine. She was even dressed like him, although that might have been more in mockery than in tribute. The floaty white shirt she wore revealed ample cleavage beneath it and the black vest that fit her more like a corset. Tight gray riding pants hugged her thighs, tucked into black boots that hit her just below the knee. 

_‘Definitely a mockery,’_ Jareth decided, although everything was identical, down to the makeup. 

His twin slid down the wall until her boots touched the floor. “I just came by to check up on you. It’s been so long since I heard from my darling little brother. I was worried.” Mab’s bright red lower lip stuck out in a pout, and her tone was not one of a concerned sister. It was sarcastic, teasing.

Jareth turned away from her, not in the mood for her games or fake concern. Her heels clicked on the stone, announcing her presence as she drew closer to him. She waved a hand over Jareth’s crystal and it picked up where it left off; watching Sarah. She was alone now, walking by herself.

“Time has only made her lovelier, hasn’t it?” Mab crooned in his ear. “Her beauty could almost be described as… fae.”

“She chose her brother, and her world.” Jareth tried to sound impassive, even though the words held his heart in a vice grip.

“Maybe she regrets her choices. Perhaps all dear Sarah needs is a second chance.” Mab couldn’t be bothered to keep the look of delight off of her face, and Jareth suddenly knew what direction this conversation was headed. He did not like it one little bit.

The crystal containing Sarah’s image rolled across the floor as the Goblin King stood up suddenly, whirling to face his twin. She was standing so close that he could feel her breath on his face, but neither of them touched each other. “… I do not believe she would choose differently.” He was quiet, unusually quiet, as though he were whispering a terrible secret.

Mab looked almost sorry for him, but it did not stop her from uttering, “Let us find out, brother. A wager, shall we? One last chance to see if you can steal the maiden’s heart.”

Jareth eyed her cautiously. He was slow to speak, as all of his feelings seemed to be caught in his throat. “What are your terms?”

“Nothing extreme. If you fail in making Sarah fall in love with you, then I get control of the Labyrinth for one day of the year. If you succeed, then you get…”

“The Queen’s Garden’s,” Jareth said automatically. He knew the one place that was as important to his twin as the Labyrinth was to him. “For the same period of time.”

Mab scowled at the idea of having to surrender her extensive personal garden for any length of time to her twin brother. “… Fine,” she finally agreed after a moment of thought.

The fae woman held out her hand to strike their deal. Jareth accepted it, but Mab’s grip held him tightly so he couldn’t pull away as she added. “And your competitor in this wager is me.”

Once she let go, Jareth jerked his hand back as though her touch burned. He stared at Mab as she watched him with no small amount of satisfaction on her face. She would try and steal Sarah - _his Sarah_ – away. He wished he had the power to banish her to the Bog of Eternal Stench forever… but that ability was something else she had won in a bet, when they were both much younger fae.

Knowing she had one, Mab turned on her heel. “Good luck brother,” she called out over her shoulder as she strutted from his throne room. “See you on the battlefield.”

Jareth gaped after her, wondering what Mab could possibly stand to gain from attempting to humiliate him this time. He waited until the doors slammed shut behind her, and he was alone, before retrieving his crystal from the floor. Sarah smiled at him from his glassy surface, blissfully unaware of the fae who were about to meddle in her life again.


	2. Chapter 2

Sarah only knew this was a dream because she was dressed in a ball gown. She hadn’t worn one since… Him. All of her dreams about Him had been more like nightmares than anything; her running through the ruins of his castle, trying to escape. He always watched her silently, following her everywhere she went like the serial killer in a horror movie.

This time was different. She was in a garden, and beautiful couldn’t even begin to describe it. Everything was in bloom. Flowers of all kinds bigger than her hand boasted vibrant colors, bushes that were neatly trimmed formed a wall on either side of her, so she couldn’t see very far in any direction but straight ahead. Sarah stood there, gaping and taking in all that there was to see for a long while, before holding her skirts in one hand and starting forward to see what this new dream had in store for her.

It wasn’t long before the path opened up in front of her to reveal a large marble fountain. There were more flowers here, large and orange, and they seemed to be even more alive somehow. Through the curtain of water, she could see a figure in a cape. Sarah’s heart flipped in her chest as the figure moved, coming around the fountain…

“Sarah.”

Not Him. It wasn’t Him. Sarah didn’t even have time to figure out whether she was disappointed or relieved because the figure, who turned out to be a woman, was just as gorgeous as the garden they were standing in. Long black hair cascaded in waves around her face, framing sharp features and green eyes brighter than any leaf dared to be. Her dress was a rich purple, and her cape was a dark gray, so dark it might have been black. Sarah knew immediately from her clothes and the way she carried herself that she must be in the presence of royalty. Whether it was her own dress or dream compulsion, Sarah gave the woman a deep curtsy without being prompted.

The lady smiled, and the warmth of it radiated out, hot against Sarah’s skin. “Please stand,” she prompted gently, pausing in front of Sarah. “You are very bright, my sweet.” 

Sarah’s cheeks turned pink at the compliment. Up this close, she could see a dainty silver circlet rested upon the woman’s forehead, and under her eyes and cheekbones sparkled with glitter. “It was obvious, your majesty.”

The dark haired woman smile widened with delight. “Because you’ve encountered royalty before. Although, my kingdom is more pleasant than the labyrinth, I think.”

Sarah took a step back, her face scrunched up in a frown. Her obvious discomfort was laughed off. “Don’t worry, my sweet. The Goblin King has no power here, and he is not fool enough to test that. I wonder though…” Green eyes flashed mischievously as pink lips curled up into a smirk. “Do you fear him?” 

“No!” Sarah insisted at once, loudly as the red in her face got brighter and hotter. The fae queen laughed again, much more softly this time. “Of course you don’t. You bested his Labyrinth. You’re earned your bravery... And, if I may be so bold, your unearthly beauty.”

“Is that what you want from me then?” Sarah demanded to know, pretending for all the world that her face was not on fire from the unusual compliment. She had played games like these before, and she wasn’t a spoiled child any longer, screaming that it was unfair. She just wanted to find out what this woman wanted so that she could wake up.

It was the other woman’s turn to look displeased. “I have enough of my own, thank you,” she replied coldly, before regaining her previous composure. “If you think I want anything from you, then your time with Jareth must have been simply awful.” The sugary sweet voice had returned, and now it was dripping with sympathy that Sarah doubted was genuine… but it was still very convincing.

“I… had friends.” Sarah was quick to defend those who had helped her through the Labyrinth the first time. They were the only reason that she had won.

The queen sat on the side of the fountain. “Of course you did, my sweet. A girl as lovely as you makes friends wherever she goes. How are they faring? Hoddel, was it? How is he?”  
“Hoggle,” Sarah corrected as her stomach tied itself in knots. “I’m not sure. We haven’t spoken in a while.” Not since she had returned home.

A slender hand patted the marble, inviting Sarah to join her. “Why don’t we check in on him? We can see him here.” The queen waved a hand over the water and the waves stopped, reflecting back their images like a mirror. Sarah could see that her dress was a stark contrast to the queen’s, light where hers was dark. 

Their images rippled, and when they became clear again, Sarah could see Hoggle. He looked very unhappy, but she couldn’t tell anything about where he was. The rest of the image was too distorted. “Jareth was rather displeased with him after he helped you,” the queen informed her, sounding sad about it. “I hear he’s being punished… but I don’t know how.”

“Is there anything we can do to help him?” Sarah asked in a thick voice. Hoggle didn’t deserve to be punished, not because of her.

The queen waved her hand again, and the image of Hoggle turned back into water and their choppy reflections. “Are you willing to leave your world, to rescue your friends?” she asked seriously. “You would risk returning, and knowing you might not be able to go home?”

Sarah hesitated. She had a life now… which is something she wouldn’t be able to have without Hoggle’s help. “Through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered,” the brunette girl quipped.

A fresh smile graced the lips of the queen. “Very good,” she murmured, leaning in towards Sarah. “But first, I need you to do something for me, my sweet…”

“What?” Sarah tried to ignore the fact the smell of the queen’s perfume and the closeness of her face was making her heart pound loudly in her chest.

“Wake up.” 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Sarah awoke with a jolt, sitting up in her bed and covered with sweat. Meanwhile, Mab sat in her garden, grinning to herself. Jareth’s face appeared in the fountain water. He looked livid, but Mab gazed down on him lovingly.

“Sarah’s dreams are mine,” he growled. Mab observed him for a moment. “Then that’s just one part of her that I’ve taken from you already.” The queen waved her hand, banishing her brother’s image from her sight before walking away from the fountain and back to her castle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter three will have more Jareth~ 
> 
> Thank you everyone for the comments and kudos!


	3. Chapter 3

_“Sarah…”_

A ghostly whisper echoed around the halls of the stone corridor that looked eerily like the beginning of the Labyrinth as she remembered. Fog obscured her vision so she couldn’t see very far in either direction, and she had no idea where she was. Sarah stood frozen, unsure of where to go or what to do.

_“Sarah…!”_

The voice was louder this time, and closer too. She began to run away from it, not ready to see who the voice belonged to, or what they wanted from her. The fog that had felt very normal at first now pressed tightly around her, smothering her like she’d been wrapped in a comforter and sat upon. She was choking; there was no air to breathe, only fog, but she kept running even though her lungs burned.

“Sarah!” The voice was practically on top of her now, and it shrieked at her as she swatted at what she wasn’t sure was there. Her flailing limbs made contact with something solid. Strong hands grabbed a hold of hers…

“Woah, girl!” 

It wasn’t the Labyrinth after all. Sarah sat up with a start, so quickly that Briana had to take a quick step backwards to avoid the back of her friend’s head smacking into her. Her college chemistry classroom, bright and full of lab equipment, were her current surroundings. She breathed a sigh of relief. “It was just a dream.”

Briana’s eyebrows raised so high they nearly met with her hairline. “Must have been some dream. You okay?”

Grabbing her books and rising quickly from her seat, Sarah nodded. “I just haven’t been sleeping well,” she assured her friend. The truth was… just too weird to try and explain, so the brunette settled for trying to make things a much smaller deal than they actually were.

Forehead wrinkles ironed themselves back out as Briana’s eyebrows came back down to their resting position. “Well, alright then. Come on, girl! I want to grab a smoothie before start on this headache of a project. And clearly you’re going to need some caffeine.”  
~ ~ ~  
The image in the crystal distorted as the two girls left the classroom and walked away from his viewing area. Jareth cursed to himself. He had been so close. Still she resisted him, even in her dreams. Her fighting spirit had grown even stronger than ever, and the Goblin King liked to think he had himself to thank for that, in part. 

Normally he might have enjoyed the challenge of reaching her, but now was not the time for that. Sarah had to be warned about Mab’s trickery. What exactly his twin’s endgame was, he couldn’t say, but it frustrated him to no end that she had spoken with Sarah in a dream so recently, while the girl still eluded even the mere mention of himself. 

Jareth sighed, sinking wearily into his throne. None of his subjects were around to witness this sudden display of weakness, so he did not mind taking a moment to himself. He stared at the blank crystal momentarily, as though its transparent surface might suddenly show him the answer to all his problems. When none magically appeared, he returned to what he seemed to be doing best as of late; watching her.

Sarah and her friend were sitting at a table, and while there were textbooks out and open in front of them, it didn’t appear that either one was doing much studying. Briana took a long loud slurp from her straw. “Please, please, please? Pretty please you say you’ll come? With strawberry banana and whipped cream on top?” The smoothie in the redhead's cup sloshed to punctuate her statement.

The brunette sighed. “Six hours warning is not a lot of time if you want me to go to a party with you tonight. Weren’t you just saying that I should be getting more sleep?”

“Girl, you will get more sleep! All the alcohol and dancing is gonna knock you right out! You’ll be sleeping like a baby… at say, four in the morning.” There was a stare down, a momentary battle of wills… And for once, Sarah was the first to break.

“Okay. I guess I could use more fun in my life.” Briana cheered in triumph and the two girls clinked their to go cups together. “Finish that soda; I’m taking you shopping!” The two girls started to pack up their school things. Studying could wait for another time, there was fun to be had _now_.

~ ~ ~

Jareth waved his hand over the crystal. He had seen all that he needed to see. This could be his chance. Yes, this was the perfect opportunity. Sarah wouldn’t have her guard up, Mab wouldn’t be there to interfere… He could finish this little wager before it got out of control. Sarah had nearly loved him once before, and if a little glamour had to help finish the job, then so be it. She was his, and he wouldn’t lose her again. Not to anyone. Especially not his infuriating nuisance of a twin.

The Goblin King stalked out of his throne room. As his love had said, six hours was not a lot of time to prepare for an evening out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this chapter isn't very long for such a long wait; sorry! D: The next one will be much longer, and I will make up for it with party shenanigans~


End file.
